Love in the Shadows
by PandaTeddyClaws
Summary: Anzu couldn't stop watching the shadows. She knew something was there, she just didn't know what.
1. Like a bad horror movie

Title: Love in the shadows

Chapter 1: Like a bad horror movie

Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh!

Pairing: Anzu x Ryou (slight pairing with other characters)

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! Or any of its characters

Warning! This is rated M for a reason, do not read if you do not like swearing or sexual content. Though there may be none in this chapter, there may be in later chapters.

Anzu shifted her neck on the uncomfortably hard head rest.

She leaned her head forward and groaned as the bus moved awkwardly around the turns on the trail occasionally bumping upwards and sending her stomach flip-flopping. Bus rides never sat too well with her stomach and the noise of chattering voices were giving her a very painful headache.

The other girls on the bus seemed just fine as they chatted and laughed to each other, occasionally looking at Anzu, only to turn back and begin snickering to each other about how her appearance . Anzu didn't care, in fact she almost felt like laughing at herself too.

From head to toe Anzu looked like she had just crawled out of a gutter; her normally silky chestnut hair was a mess of tangles and dead leaves, her skin a dark swollen red in places, her dancing outfit was covered in large patches of dried dirt, her feet bare and somewhat bruised caked with more dried dirt and her hands bruised and covered in small scraps and cuts.

She smirked to herself.

'_Let them laugh. I'm glad I did what I did and I'll be damned if I let them get to me!'_ She smiled inwardly, proud of herself as she rubbed her hands together, trying to numb the pain in them.

Suddenly the bus jumped causing most of the girls to shriek as it landed.

Anzu watched curiously as the bus ground to a halt, their dance instructor and the driver stepped off the bus, talking to each other in whispers. The other girls began talking to each other in panicked fashion, watching from the window as the driver pointed out the flat tire to their instructor. Anzu watched the men talking before turning her eyes to their surroundings and sighing inwardly.

They were in a forest. _'A fairly thick forest'_ Anzu judged by the amount of trees that towered above the bus window. The sky was growing dark as rain clouds slowly approached the stranded vehicle from the horizon. It was very unlikely the driver could change the tire on such an unstable road and the nearest town was a good two miles away.

Reaching into her bag, Anzu pulled out her phone and checked the reception. No bars. She sighed to herself again. This was turning out like a very bad horror movie opening and it seemed she wasn't the only one to think so as the other girls began to talk rather loudly

Girl 1:"Oh my god! What if there's zombies!"

Girl 2:"Or wolfs!"

Girl 3:"OR RATS!" The bus erupted into a number of huge screams. Anzu put her hand on her forehead and groaned. This was not helping her headache in the slightest.

She couldn't figure out what sounded more ridiculous, the fact they thought zombies would be in the forest or that a rat would be more frightening!

Their instructor got back on the bus and whistled to get their attention as he often did in class. The girls fell silent as he began to speak.

Instructor: "Alright ladies. We have a small problem, but there's no need to panic. The driver's gone to look for help and should be back shortly." The girls exchanged nervous glances to one another" So let's all stay calm and wait till he gets back to panic alright?"

The instructor had said the last part jokingly but it seemed to just make the girls worry more.

Anzu leaned back into her chair. She noticed some of the girls trying their phones as well, but no one could get a reception. Looking out the window she watched the trees slowly sway, not really thinking about anything. Sure, she didn't want to be stranded in the middle of nowhere with a group of girls who; she learned pretty quickly when meeting them; did not like her very much but it was unlikely that there would be any sort of danger on a marked road.

Something caught Anzu's eye as she gazed out the window. A large black shape stuck out from one of the trees. Squinting her eyes, the black mass seemed to take the form of a person

'_What is that?'_ The harder Anzu stared at it, the more she saw the outline of a person. Unfortunately the need to blink outweighed her curiosity and when she opened her eyes once more the figure was gone.

Scanning the tree up and down, she couldn't see the strange black mass anywhere. She shrugged and turned back into her seat dismissing it as paranoia.

Their instructor had now realized there was no reception as he checked his own phone. Nervously he turned back to the girls.

Instructor: "Can anyone get any bars on their phones?" .The tension seemed to rise in the bus as no one could raise their hands.

The sound of something hitting the roof of the bus caused all but Anzu and the instructor to shriek at the top of their lungs. Covering her ears Anzu stared out the window as the first few droplets of rain began to fall, hitting the bus hard as a strong wind began blowing.

The instructor had begun calming the girls when the driver returned to the bus. The two men whispered to each other as the girls frantically spoke in their little groups`.

Some were nervously laughing for over reacting while others were on the brink of tears; Anzu however was watching the conversation going on at the top of the bus. The driver looked calm as he spoke but their instructor had an uncertain look on his face and spoke rather quickly.

Unable to hear their words Anzu briefly wondered if the driver had found a place they could stay '_Like a creepy old haunted mansion with an old butler slowly beckoning them with one finger'._ Anzu laughed at the thought '_Then it really would be a bad horror movie!'_

Anzu was shook from her thoughts as she heard the familiar sound of their instructor's whistle. He didn't look very happy with whatever decision they had come upon.

Instructor: "Alright ladies, there's an old house a little up the road from here. The owner has very generously offered us a place to stay while the driver calls for some maintenance. Now I don't want to force anyone to come into an unknown place their not comfortable with, so if anyone has any objections I'd like to hear them now".

The girls on the bus nervously glanced at each other. No one in their right mind would want to go into a stranger's home, but staying on the bus didn't seem like the greatest idea either. The girls remained silent as they weighed their options. Anzu thought for a moment '_Doesn't look like anyone's going to object. I don't really want to but the last thing I need is being the one person who goes against the others'. _Anzu remained silent.

Instructor:" There's no reason to be shy. If you don't want to go it's perfectly alright". The girls remained silent.

Instructor: "Well alright then. Let's go."

Slowly the girls followed their instructor off the bus. Anzu waited for all the girls seated behind her to go first before eventually grabbing her bag and getting off as well. As she stepped out of the bus she was bombarded with lashings of hard rain and gale force wind.

Mentally cursing the light fabric of her outfit, she quickly followed the others to the side of the bus. As they quickly collected their belongings from the luggage compartment, shivering and whining at the cold wind that seemed to pierce their clothing; the driver locked the bus and led the way.

They walked for what felt like an eternity, which in actuality was only ten minutes at most in the freezing rain before finally coming to two huge black gates camouflaged in the dark greenery surrounding it. Anzu stared at the house in front of her and secretly believed she was a physic.

The house was in fact an old mansion and aside from the beckoning butler it most definitely looked haunted.

As they made their way up the path way to the mansion, Anzu felt a chill go down her spine at its appearance. It looked well kept, with all its windows intact and all the ceiling tiles neatly in place. Not that you could see the roof as you got closer, the mansion was a good four stories high with the roof beginning at the fourth level.

'_An attic maybe?'_ Anzu's thoughts were cut short as they reached to large iron doors. Both intricately designed with floral and vine patterns that met in the middle of the doors, where a large rose shaped knocker seemed to act as a lock for the two doors.

As the driver lifted and dropped the knocker against the door, the girls were squashing together under the porch, desperate to get out of the cold and cruel weather.

After two knocks the door was opened.

None of the girls taught twice before entering the possibly dangerous mansion, all simply wanting shelter, Anzu herself only hesitated a moment before entering.

Once inside Anzu heard a number of girls gasp as she did when she saw the one who had opened the door, and who was currently closing it after their instructor finally entered.

Never in her life had Anzu seen such a beautiful man.

His eyes were emerald green with slanted pupils and a small line of black traced down his cheek from one eye; his hair was black and spiked with a red and black head band keeping it out of his face. He was wearing a long black robe but from the way it hung off his shoulders it was obvious he had a slim figure. A single dice ear ring hung from one of his ears.

He turned to face the group and smirked, causing most of them to squeal and blush and the sound of his voice wasn't going to help.

"Welcome to my humble home. My name is Duke Devlin, but you beautiful young ladies can call me Duke."

Anzu could swear that the squeals the girls in her dance class emitted were high pitched enough to shatter glass. Almost immediately, all the worries and fears the girls had had about going into the mansion disappeared now replaced with excited giggles and heart shaped eyes.

Anzu looked away from the group that had now surrounded their host and sighed

'_Great, he's a playboy. Typical.'_

Scanning the room they were in, as their instructor spoke with Duke and the girls fawned over his every word, Anzu was mildly impressed. The room was large, possibly fitting about a hundred people without cramping.

The walls were a type of dark wood with small dim lights placed along it and the floor was covered with decorated tiles, which formed what looked like a multi coloured rose in the centre of the room. A large stair way with a dark red carpet led to the higher levels of the house and the room was furnished with a number of dark wood book cases and seats with the same dark red material as the stairs.

The seats looked like the kind you would find in an old English house, long with the dark wood framing the red material and the book cases were packed with many different sized books and different coloured spines.

The roof of the room confused her. Despite the levels above the room, the roof seemed to curve at the top. The light didn't seem to reach too high as the roof was covered in shadows.

Anzu let her eyes linger on the shadows.

Something was strange about them.

It was like the shadow in the forest, like there was a shape to the shadows. A few shapes actually and the more she stared the more see believed something was staring back.

'_It looks likes there are several people sticking out of the ceiling... or sticking to the ceiling.'_

Anzu was wrenched from her thoughts as the driver began speaking to their instructor.

Driver:" Well I rang, but it doesn't look like they'll be able to get the repair trucks out in this storm" the driver nodded to the window, the rain battered against the glass with such force it looked like it would shatter and the wind howled like a rabid animal.

Instructor:" I'll have to contact the girl's parents but I'm not sure about keeping them on the bus overnight..." he was cut off by a chuckle from Duke.

Duke:" I'd be more than happy to let you and your students stay the night. I have plenty of spare rooms" his voice took on a sadden tone "and it would break my heart knowing such beautiful young ladies were sleeping on a cold bus in the middle of a storm".

While the others burst into a fit of embarrassed squeals, Anzu rolled her eyes

'_Oh yes, because that doesn't sound creepy at all!'_

Their instructor looked serious in thought.

Instructor:" Exactly who lives in this house?"

Duke smiled

Duke:" Just me actually. Truth be told, this place is meant to be turned into a bed and breakfast soon, so the rooms are all clean and freshly furnished. There's a large bathing area through that door" he pointed to a door on the left wall "and there's a kitchen and dining room down the hall." He turned to the girls, still smiling

" It would actually be a great help if you could give me a report about the quality of the place and it would be a great honour having such cute first guests".

Anzu was expecting the squeals this time and quickly covered her ears to save herself from another headache. Their instructor still didn't look to sure but the girls had already begun asking him where the rooms were. As they began following Duke up the stairs, Anzu gave one last look at the dark forms hidden in the shadows

'_I must be seriously tired...but still, I'll have to make sure later.'_

_Please R&R_


	2. Shifting Shadows

Title: Love in the shadows

Chapter 2: Shifting Shadows

Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh!

Pairing: Anzu x Ryou (slight pairing with other characters)

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! Or any of its characters

Warning! This is rated M for a reason, do not read if you do not like swearing or sexual content. Though there may be none in this chapter, there may be in later chapters.

As Duke finished his tour of the second level he turned to the group.

Duke:" As I said, your bed rooms will all be along this hallway. There are plenty of rooms and they're all up to standard so just pick whichever one you want." He then turned to the driver and instructor "And you gentlemen will be down the opposite hall in the main rooms."

Instructor:"Wait a minute. I'm not comfortable leaving the girls on their own."

Duke smile again

Duke:"You have nothing to fear good sir. I'll be sleeping in the room beside yours" he turned to the girls with an innocent smile "Not that I'd try anything with you lovely ladies. At least...not without your permission first."

Anzu rolled her eyes as the girls giggled excitedly. _'Could this guy be any less subtle?"_

To seal the deal, Duke gave a secret wink to the girls as he turned back to their instructor.

Cue excited giggles. Anzu mentally sighed _'Yes. Apparently he can!'_

Anzu felt her eyes wandering back to the stair case behind them. Something about the shadows on the ceiling was upsetting her.

They were, scaring her.

Duke: "Now I'm sure the young ladies would like to warm up from the cold. So I took the liberty of heating the water in the bath."

Girl 1:" Are there baths in the bed rooms?"

Duke:" Unfortunately no. Only the main bedrooms are en-suite. The bath is quite large though so you needn't worry about space" his voice took on a seductive tone "but if you can think of a more fun way to warm yourselves up, I'd be more than happy...to oblige!"

Anzu resisted the urge to gag._' Seriously, do they not see how suspicious this guy is? He's a total pervert!'_

Unfortunately the girls didn't find him suspicious in the least, taking his advances as compliments and replying with shy giggles or excited squeals. The group began to make their way to the door Duke had pointed out as the bath room earlier.

Anzu didn't want to go with them. She wanted a bath but she wasn't in the mood for any of the insults or jokes they would no doubt make about her body. Not that she was ashamed of her body, quite the opposite actually. She was pretty with a great figure and ample chest, but this just gave the girls ammunition for their obviously jealous insults.

She had been called a slut more times than she could count, despite the fact she had managed to keep her virginity intact for the seventeen years she had been alive.

'_I'll just wait till they finish and go in after'_ she thought quietly to herself as she descended the stairs. When the finale girl walked through the door, shutting it behind her, Duke had gone to show the other men where they would be sleeping

Anzu was left standing in the main room once more by herself with the shadows.

Staring at the ceiling once more Anzu became very confused. The shadow figures were gone. The darkness that covered the ceiling was still there but whatever had been sticking out was gone.

'_Did I imagine it?_' No matter how hard Anzu stared she couldn't see the figures anymore.

Duke:" Well this is a surprise."

Anzu felt her heart jump as Duke walked down the stairs towards her

Anzu:" E, Excuse me?" '_Wait why am I stuttering?'_

Duke:" I would have thought you'd be the first into the bath"

Anzu:" O, Oh. H, How come?" _'Stop stuttering! He's not that handsome. Okay he is, but he's a total creep remember!'_ Anzu felt herself blush as he stood right in front of her smirking '_Stupid! Stop blushing!'_

Duke:" Well not that you don't make dirt very fashionable but you seemed to be the only one wearing it."

Anzu's face turned red as she realised she still looked like she crawled through the gutter

Anzu:" Oh right."

Duke began chuckling. _'Oh great and now he's laughing at me, just what I need'_ the blush on Anzu's face was quickly replaced with a look of annoyance.

Duke:" Sorry didn't mean to be rude" the fact he was still laughing seemed to prove him wrong. "Mind if I ask what happened?"

Anzu sighed.

Anzu:" It's not much of a story"

Duke:"I promise not to laugh anymore if you tell me" He gave her another smirk

_'Damn him and his sexy smirk'_ Anzu's brain stopped for a moment _' I did not just call him sexy... Damn it! I just called him sexy!'_

Anzu gave Duke a mild glare as she felt another blush warming her cheeks, much to his amusement.

Anzu:" Well you see, we were at this dance camp for the past week and the one of the people running the camp has a daughter. She's only about six but she's seriously cute and she seemed to take a liking to me while we were there."

Anzu glanced at Duke to make sure he was listening. He was staring at the ceiling, which annoyed the hell out of her. Noticing she stopped talking he looked back to her.

Duke:" Oh sorry. Please continue"

Anzu frowned

Anzu:" Were you even listening?"

Duke gave a seductive smirk

Duke:" Of course I was my dear la..." Anzu raised her hand in front of Duke's face before he could finish.

Anzu:" First off Romeo, enough with the sweet talk. The name's Anzu, try calling me anything else and you will seriously regret it. Second you're the one who asked to hear my story, so you could at least bother to pay attention. Got it** Mr. Devlin?**"

Duke's eyes widened in shock. Anzu resisted the urge to snap her fingers at his dumbfound face

'_Take that sexy smirk!'_

"Ha!"

Now it was Anzu's turn to be shocked. Someone had laughed but it wasn't Duke. It sounded like it came from above them. Anzu snapped her eyes up to the shadows.

They were there again.

The shadowy figures, sticking out of the ceiling but in different places then the first time she saw them`. There was no way she was imagining it now.

'_But there was nothing there a minute ago and the positions are different. What the hell's going on?'_

Duke:"Anzu?"

Looking back to Duke, Anzu saw the nervous look he was giving her. He almost looked...ashamed.

Duke:" I'm sorry Anzu. I didn't mean to be rude or try to sweet talk you " he turned his face away and looked at the ground " It's just normally girls like it when I talk to them like that, I...I'm really sorry".

Anzu felt a little bit guilty looking at him. He seemed really upset by her words.

She scratched the back of head nervously.

Anzu:" Y, Yeah...it's okay."

He looked up at her smiling, but it wasn't his normal smug smile, it was gentler, warmer.

Duke:" Really? Awesome!" he gave her a goofy smile that caused her to stifle a giggle.

'_He's actually kind of nice.'_

Duke:" I really would like to hear the rest of your story and this time I promise you have my undivided attention."

Anzu smirked.

Anzu:" Alright. So did you actual hear what I said last time or should I start over?"

Duke:" You made friends with the daughter of someone running the camp right?"

Anzu:" Oh, so you were listening" he gave her another goofy smile making her giggle again but this time she didn't try to hide it.

Anzu:" So yeah. The girl really liked me and she had this kitten that kept climbing up trees, so I'd climb up to get it down when it got stuck. I like animals so I didn't mind helping her." She glanced at Duke who was keeping his promise and listening intently. She smiled as she continued her story

Anzu:" Then today was our last day, so we were getting ready to leave when the girl came to me crying. A river runs along the side of the camp and the kitten had climbed up a tree beside it. When I got there the kitten had climbed out on to a branch above the river. Unfortunately the branch wasn't very strong so it snapped when the kitten stepped on it. The kitten fell into the river. I sort of panicked when I saw it fall so I just did the first thing that came to mind."

Duke:" So you jumped in after it?"

Anzu:"Bingo. The river's current wasn't too strong so I managed to save it and get out of the river safely. Thankfully the kitten was okay, aside from being a little bit soaked." Anzu sighed "Unfortunately because of my little hero act we were delayed so there was no time for me to change or dry out my clothes."

She smirked

Anzu:"Hence the o-natural look I'm currently sporting"

Duke stood with wide eyes and a shocked expression on his face. Anzu laughed nervously.

Anzu:"Was my joke that bad?"

Duke blinked

Duke:" Oh no, it's just...you'd risk your life for an animal?"

Anzu shrugged and smiled

Anzu:" It wasn't as serious as life or death. I mean worst case scenario I'd end up seriously injured and the kitten drowned, but thankfully that didn't happen and I just ended up with a couple of scratches and bruises. Oh, and a pair of ruined sneakers"

Duke smirked

Duke:"So that's why you're barefoot."

Anzu returned the smirk with one of her own

Anzu:" Nope! I just like to be able to wiggle my toes"

Duke burst into laughter at her joke and soon Anzu found herself laughing too. The two stood there laughing, their voices echoing off the walls.

Suddenly Anzu remembered the unknown laugh from earlier. Glancing up she saw that the figures hadn't moved. As the two slowly returned to normal, Anzu turned to Duke

Anzu:" So, um, Duke?"

Duke wiped his eyes and looked at her, a warm smile still across his face.

Duke:" Yeah?"

Anzu shifted nervously, unsure if what she was about to say made any sense at all.

Anzu:" You see how the ceiling is covered in shadows, do you see a couple of things pointing out from it?"

Duke looked at her wide eyed for a second but quickly went back to normal

Duke:" What do you mean?"

'_He sounds nervous. He must think I'm crazy'_ Anzu looked back at the ceiling, sure enough the figures were still there. She slowly pointed to one of them. Duke followed the path of her finger and shrugged.

Duke:" Can't say I see anything weird, just darkness"

Anzu stared harder _'I'm not imagining it, so why can't he see them?'_

Something brushed against her cheek, startled she turned to see Duke much closer to her with the tips of his fingers touching her face.

Duke:" You're really not a normal girl are you Anzu?" his voice was just barely above a whisper, but the strong tone in his voice sent shivers down her spine. She backed away blushing

Anzu:" D, Duke? What are you-"

Anzu felt her back hit a wall as Duke cupped the side of her face in his hand. Duke closed the space between them, trapping Anzu between the wall and his chest. He moved so his face was right in front of hers. Anzu was staring right into his eyes and him into hers. Anzu felt her mind begin to fog

'_What's going on...why am I letting him...his eyes are so...so...'_

Anzu's eyes clouded over as Duke gently tilted her chin up. He smirked and whispered into her ear

Duke:"No. You're not a normal girl at all."

Anzu shivered as he gently ran the tip of his tongue along her ear down to her jaw line. He lifted her head back some more to give himself more access to her neck. Anzu gasped as he slowly trailed kisses up and down her neck. '_No...This isn't...I, I can't...'_ Anzu tried to speak as she felt another shiver go down her spine

Anzu:" D, Duke...please..."

Duke:" Shhh, It's alright Anzu. Just relax and enjoy it"

Anzu's breath hitched as Duke wrapped his arm around her waist and moved his free hand up her torso. A blush darkened her face as she felt him nibble on the crook of her neck, her breathing becoming slightly erratic. A small moan escaped her lips as she felt his fingers gently caress her chest.

Anzu couldn't think. Her mind had become completely clouded and her vision slightly blurred. Trying to regain her senses she tried looking around.

And then she saw them.

The figures were moving.

There were still there, but they were moving around on the ceiling right in front of her eyes.

Anzu's eyes widened as her mind immediately cleared and she realised what she was doing but more importantly what Duke was doing to her!

Using all her strength she pushed him away from her, her breathing still slightly erratic. Duke stumbled backwards, a puzzled look on his face.

Anzu:" Don't touch me!" Anzu nearly screamed as she shoved him further back. Duke fell back on to the ground still looking confused as hell.

Duke:"How did you-"he sounded as confused as he looked, staring at her. Anzu covered her chest with her arms, feeling self conscious and disgusted at the same time.

Anzu:" They moved!"

Duke looked shocked as his eyes widened

Duke:" Wh, What?"

Anzu:" THE SHADOWS! I SAW THEM MOVE!" Anzu was definitely screaming at this point but she didn't care. She was embarrassed and terrified of what she just saw and what had just happened between her and Duke.

The door to the bathroom opened as the girls walked out, stopping to see the scene before them.

Girl1:" Mazaki? What's going on? "

Girl2:" Oh my God! Duke!"

The girls all swarmed towards their beloved host who was still lying on the ground staring at Anzu. They turned and glared at her, jealousy and venom in each one

Girl1:" What did you do Mazaki?"

Girl2:" Did you attack Duke? What the hell's wrong with you?"

Girl3:" Why did you attack him?"

Girl4:"Are you cracked in the head or something?"

Girl5:" How dare you attack him you whore!"

Soon all the girls were yelling at Anzu, accusing her of assaulting Duke when she failed to seduce him and calling her a number of crude and distasteful names.

Anzu didn't respond. She was angry 'So _because I stopped some creep from feeling me up, I'm the_ _bad guy!'_ Shooting one finale hateful glare at Duke, Anzu rushed into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

With the object of their hatred gone the girls turned back to comforting Duke, who was brushing the dirt from his robe as he stood. Standing up straight Duke gave the girls his signature smirk as they talked and cooed to him. But he wasn't listening. Raising his hand to silence them he spoke softly

Duke:" Now, now ladies I'm perfectly fine so please stop worrying." His face took on a devious look "But I would feel much better if I could see you lovely ladies in your nightwear. That is, if you want me to feel better."

As the girls raced to their rooms with embarrassed squeals, Duke glared up at the shadow figures and whispered harshly

Duke:" Way to go you idiots!"

Above him the shadows shifted and dispersed

Please R&R

I'd like to get a view reviews to see if the story is worth putting up.


	3. Laughing

I'm sorry for the late update, all is explained in the note at the end of the story.

Title: Love in the shadows

Chapter 3: Laughing

Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh!

Pairing: Anzu x Ryou (slight pairing with other characters)

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! Or any of its characters

Warning! This is rated M for a reason, do not read if you do not like swearing or sexual content. Though there may be none in this chapter, there may be in later chapters.

Anzu angrily tossed her dirty dance uniform into the basket in the changing room, dropping her dance bag with her pyjamas and change of clothes beside it. A number of bathrobes hung from the walls, supported by small hooks. Anzu glared at the wall and clenched her fists as the urge to hit something became very tempting. More than angry, she was disgusted with herself.

'_How could I let him do that to me?'_ She shivered as she remembered the feel of Duke's hot breath on her neck.

'_Why couldn't I stop him when he looked at me?_' Rage took over her mind once more as she removed the rest of her clothes and grabbed a small wash towel from the pile beside the archway into the bath.

Anzu:" I should have throttled him." Her voice came out in a low venomous whisper as she walked through the arch way into the bath room.

Surprise over took her features as she examined the size of the bath. It was huge. There was only one bath, making it look more like a pool. A number of shower heads were hanging on the walls along the tiled floor, each with a small metal drain under it.

As angry as she was, Anzu couldn't help but feel impressed.

Anzu:" Wow...I wonder how long it takes to clean."

A mental image of Duke wearing a frilly pink apron with a matching handkerchief wrapped where his head band normally was and cleaning gloves scrubbing the pale blue tiles on the floor popped into her head.

Anzu covered her mouth to stop the intense laughter from escaping.

Her whole body shook as she tried to suppress the laughs that quietly fell from her mouth.

Anzu:" Pfffft!" eventually she couldn't hold it in anymore and burst into a happy laughter, holding her sides to stop herself from falling.

Slowly she stopped laughing and wiped the tears from her eyes.

Feeling a lot better Anzu headed for one of the shower heads. Turning the knob, she flinched and winced as cold water sprayed over her bare skin. Her body relaxed as the water slowly heated up.

Anzu sighed as she felt the now hot water soak her hair, turning it a darker brown. Glancing around, she noticed a few small bottles of shampoos and soaps, lined up along the wall. Dropping her wash towel into the bath, she picked up a strawberry scented shampoo and conditioner and a vanilla scented body wash.

Pouring a generous amount of shampoo onto her hand she began running it through her dark wet hair, rubbing until it was covered in a white foam. Stepping back under the spray of water, the foam slowly washed down her body in small streams.

Flicking her hair out of her face, she added the conditioner and rubbed it in, letting it sit for a few minutes before washing it out.

Turning off the faucet, Anzu picked up the body wash and retrieved her wash towel before stepping into the oversized bath.

The bath wasn't too deep and the water was just the right temperature. Sighing happily Anzu felt her muscles ease as she sat in the warm water.

'_This is heaven'_ Anzu thought happily as she slowly raised her arms above her head and stretched, releasing the stress from her back in a quiet but satisfying cracking noise. Relaxing back down, she picked up the body wash and poured another generous amount onto the small wash towel.

Working the clear liquid into foam, she scrubbed the towel up and down her arm before swapping hands and cleaning the other arm.

She winced as she went over a bruise on her shoulder but slowly relaxed once again as she gently massaged the wounded skin.

Anzu:" Worth it" she happily whispered to herself as she moved on to her chest. She gently scrubbed her breasts before moving up to her shoulders and neck. Suddenly Anzu felt a sharp pain at the side of her neck

Anzu:" Ouch! What the-"Anzu raised her fingers up to her neck and winced as she felt another sting of pain. Gently touching where she felt the pain, she winced once more before bringing her fingers in front of her face. Anzu's eyes widened as a light red liquid covered her fingers.

'_What, when did I?'_ Anzu remembered the events that had taken place earlier that evening and frowned. Suddenly rage took over her mind once more as she came to a realisation.

Anzu:" That creep bit me!" her voice was filled with disgust as she remembered Duke nibbling on the crook of her neck earlier.

Anzu" That un-believable creep! What kind of person does that?"

Angrily Anzu scrubbed the wound on her neck, ignoring the pain. Recalling every where he had touched, she roughly scrubbed her stomach and naval until they turned a sore red.

Slumping her shoulders she slid down into the water, with only her head and the top of her chest above water.

. Raising one of her long pale legs out of the water she ran the wash towel up and down its length. Lowering it back into the water she moved on to her other leg giving it the same treatment. Letting her leg gently submerge in the water once again, Anzu let out an angry groan as she stared up at the ceiling through the thick steam in the room

'_Am I losing my mind? Why did I let some random guy touch me like that and why did I see a bunch of shadows moving around by themselves...?"_

Anzu shut her eyes tightly as she thought of the shadows '_I definitely saw them moving, but how?'_

Anzu quietly pondered until she heard a splash.

Startled she sat up and scanned the bath. The room was filled with a thick steam making it difficult to see the other side.

Anzu stood up, clutching the wash towel close to her body and looked for any signs of another person in the room but found none.

Anzu:" Anyone there?" No response came. Feeling a bit silly for asking Anzu began to sit back into the water but stopped when she heard it.

Laughing.

Soft dark laughter echoing throughout the room.

Standing up straight, Anzu's eyes darted around the room, but could only see the hot steam in front of her. She shuddered as she felt her stomach knot and a new found fear over take her mind. The laughing continued, sending chills down Anzu's spine as she spoke.

Anzu:" Who's there?" she had tried to sound confident but the fear was obvious in her voice.

A different soft laughter was her only reply.

Anzu's breath hitched as she listened to the two different voices softly laughing.

'_Two people? But who?'_

The two different laughs continued, sometimes stopping for a moment only to start up again.

'_Is it Duke? Or are the girls messing with me? No, I would have heard them come in, so who?"_

Anzu's body shook with fear as she realised who was in the room with her, softly laughing at her.

Swallowing a lump of fear in her throat Anzu put on her bravest face and stood up straight as she spoke

Anzu:" You're those weird shadow people, aren't you?"

The laughing stopped.

Anzu stood there in silence as fear eloped her entire body and her heart began to beat rapidly. The sudden lack of noise was scaring her almost as much as the laughing did.

Trying to calm herself she slowly started moving through the water towards the archway, carefully watching for any kind of movement in the steam.

Suddenly Anzu could only see darkness.

The far off sound of the girls screaming and the sudden lack of light caused her to stop moving. Frozen in fear.

'_Is it a power outage?'_ Anzu's question was answered as the faraway screams slowly died down, leaving her once more in silence. Unfortunately she could barely think when she realised her current situation.

She was nude, with only a small towel as cover in a pitch black room with what she hoped, was only two strange shadow figures.

Anzu rarely swore but she felt this situation called for it.

Anzu:" Shit"

The laughing started again, but this time it was closer.

Anzu's whole body shook in fear; her heart felt like it would beat out of her chest. A wave of nausea came over her and she could almost feel the bile rising in her throat.

She was scared, more scared then she had ever felt before.

She was completely exposed and the shadows knew it.

'_Calm down...just calm down and think'_ unfortunately Anzu couldn't think, not with the laughter growing closer and closer to her. Anzu began to panic

Anzu:" L, LEAVE ME ALONE!" Anzu's voice shook with every word.

This seemed to amuse the shadows as their dark laughing grew louder, echoing off the walls, surrounding her with the terrifying sound.

Anzu was practically hysterical. Tears began to stream down her cheeks as she found it harder and harder to breath.

Anzu's breathing completely stopped when she felt it.

Long, cold fingers slowly running through her wet hair.

Anzu inhaled a shaky breath as the fingers pulled away from the ends of her hair, only to touch the top of her scalp and begin again.

Anzu wanted nothing more than to run, to get away from this unknown thing slowly stroking her hair but fear kept her still, slowly breathing uncertain breaths. Hot air covered the side of her face as the laughing quieted down to low chuckles beside her ear.

The fingers continued their petting as something cold slid onto Anzu's shoulder, sending shivers down her spine.

Another set of cold fingers were gently gripping her shoulder, keeping her perfectly still. Anzu's eyes were wide as she swallowed another lump in her throat. Slowly the hand on her shoulder slid towards her chest, sending goose bumps across her skin at the cold touch.

'_No I can't let this happen!'_ Anzu's mind was in frenzy as she desperately tried to figure out how to escape this disturbing situation. Slowly the hand reached her breast, cupping and squeezing the soft flesh slightly in its cold embrace.

Anzu flushed. She was about to scream when she felt a pair of cold hands slide onto her hips, catching her voice in a gasp.

'_The second voice!_' Anzu strained her eyes to try and identify the figure in front of her but to her despair the blackout robbed her of everything but darkness, the cold feeling of the figure's hands and the sound of their quiet harmonised laughter.

The hand that had been stroking her hair slid to her cheek, gently rubbing what Anzu assumed was its thumb across her skin, wiping away a few fallen tears. The second pair of icy hands slid to her thighs gently caressing her skin.

Anzu wanted to scream, but fear kept her silent, she wanted to escape but cold fingers kept her trapped.

The hand on her breast began massaging the soft mound, pinching her nipple with the tips of its frozen fingers.

.

Anzu felt her body growing hot. She had never felt these sensations before and even though she felt a small amount of pleasure from these actions, the fear of what was causing them deprived her of any comfort. _'N,No I...I don't want this...someone, anyone... please help me'_

Anzu clenched her eyes shut as a quiet whimper escaped her lips.

The voices stopped laughing and halted in their actions for a moment.

Suddenly the laughter returned but it was louder, ringing in Anzu's ears as it echoed throughout the room. The laughter filled Anzu's mind, vibrating around inside of her skull, swallowing her mind in its mocking and insane sound. Slowly the fear in Anzu was changing, morphing from the noise into something else.

Rage.

Shaking, Anzu slowly opened her eyes, a hint of anger gleaming in them behind a few unshed tears. _'Why? Why are they doing this to me?'_ She was tired of hearing that laughter, disgusted at herself for being so helpless and afraid and extremely pissed off at these perverted shadows.

Anzu's eyes narrowed as the new found rage overwhelmed her fear. Once more she felt the cold hands moving along her hips as the other figure fondled her breast and stroked her cheek in a mock sort of comfort.

Anzu recalled her earlier rage from her weakness against Duke's similar actions, the disgust she felt at letting him play with her .

'_And what am I doing now? Being just as pathetic as before!"_ Anzu glared at the unseen predators, her eyes narrowing into slits as she found the will to speak

Anzu:"Shut up" Anzu's voice was shaking, not from fear but from rage. Even though her voice was barely above a whisper the shadows seemed to hear it. The laughter didn't stop, causing Anzu's mind to elope in rage _'How dare they... How dare they do this to me!"_

Anzu:"Shut up, shut up, shut up" Anzu's voice began to get louder as anger overtook every fibre of her being. The laughing continued as if mocking her sudden show of defiance.

Clenching her eyes shut, her voice grew into a high pitched shrill scream "Shut up, SHUT UP, **SHUT UP!" **

Anzu voice over took the sound of the laughter as it echoed loudly off the walls. Suddenly she couldn't feel the cold hands on her anymore or anything at all for that matter.

'_W, What?'_ A sudden wave of exhaustion washed over Anzu's body as she heard the sound of something smashing into the walls in front and behind her.

Anzu felt her mind shut down and all the strength in her body quickly disappear.

Without the cold hand to hold her steady, Anzu's knees buckled as she collapsed into the water.

The force of hitting into the warm water was like a slap to the face, forcing her mind back into conciseness. Eyes wide Anzu snapped her head back up, quickly in-taking a sharp breath of air as her heart pumped furiously .

Light momentarily blinded her as she re-surfaced. The lights above her were once more shining and the darkness of the blackout was gone. Blinking quickly the room became less blurry and the different colours became clearer, taking on the form of the walls and floor tiles.

A number of tiles on the wall in front of her had been smashed, revealing part of the grey cement holding them in place but whatever had smashed them was nowhere in sight.

Only one thought was on Anzu's mind

'_Run'_

Following her instincts Anzu sprinted through the water towards the archway, eyes fixed on her target escape route. Her breath was erratic as blood rushed to her head, the only sound she could hear was the thumping of her heart and the sound of her splashing out of the bath.

Anzu gasped as she almost slipped on the tiled floor. Stumbling she collided harshly with the wall, inches away from the archway.

Hissing and clenching her eyes shut at the sharp pain that ran through the whole front of her body, Anzu blindly stumbled into the changing room, her lungs aching and her body in pain.

Opening her eyes she grabbed one of the bath robes hanging on a hook beside the basket with her dirty clothing in it and dance bag beside it. Wrapping the robe around herself, Anzu felt slightly less vulnerable and took a moment to catch her breath, her eyes darting around the archway for any movement.

Taking long breaths, Anzu felt her lungs begin to slow their pace and her mind begin to calm down. Never taking her eyes off the archway, Anzu grabbed her bag and clothes and quickly headed for the door to the main room.

Dashing into the main room, Anzu was relieved to see no one was there, not wasting a second she quickly ran up the stairs to the bedrooms, her bag in one hand the other holding her robe closed.

Faith seemed to be giving Anzu a break as the first door she tried was an unoccupied bedroom. Throwing her bag inside the room, Anzu flicked on the lights and shut the door.

Finally Anzu's heart returned to normal as she slumped against the door, her body tired and her mind worn out

Taking in deep breaths Anzu thought of something she had realized the moment she entered the strange mansion.

'_There is something wrong with this place'_

_Note: Currently I am very busy with school and so I won't be able to update as fast as I'd like to. I would greatly appreciate any feedback or reviews as it helps me know if the story is worth writing. I'll try to add chapters as soon as I can so please bear with me._

_R&R_


	4. Kuriboh?

_Sorry for the late update_

_A big thanks to OfBrokenLove for the advice they gave me and to fi13ns and The Last Fallen Angel for their kind reviews. I love you guys! _

_Enjoy!_

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><p>Title: Love in the shadows<p>

Chapter 4: Kuriboh?

Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh!

Pairing: Anzu x Ryou (slight pairing with other characters)

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! Or any of its characters

Warning! This is rated M for a reason, do not read if you do not like swearing or sexual content. Though there may be none in this chapter, there may be in later chapters.

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><p>Sitting on the edge of her bed Anzu stared at the ground, her eyes void of any emotion but her mind blazing with fear. A shudder ran down her spine as she recalled the feeling of the icy shadows playing with her herself tightly Anzu used all her will power to stop herself from crying. She was scared. What girl wouldn't be after something like that? She had been so exposed, felt so vulnerable and weak. Worst of all she didn't know exactly what it was she was meant to fear.<p>

Her fingers clenched tightly on the sleeves of her pale blue night dress, stopping her nails from piercing her palm in her fisted hands. Bringing her knees up onto the bed, revealing her pale slender legs, Anzu gently placed her head on top of them, her face buried in her arms. Dark strands of damp hair clung to her forehead as she took in another shaky breath, her whole body shuddering as she did.

Never in her life had Anzu known fear like this. Never had she felt so out of control of her emotions. Blinking, the brunet realised that she had felt like this before.

It wasn't exactly the same but the feeling of fear she was experiencing now was similar to how she felt six years ago, when she lost her parents.

This time Anzu didn't stop the tears as they slowly made their way down her rosy cheeks. Her parents, how she missed them, how she wished she could see them once more. To hear her mother's soft soothing voice as she told her everything would be alright or to feel her father's strong loving arms hug and hold her like she was the most precious thing in the world. A small smile crept its way across her lips as she blinked away the tears blurring her vision.

'_Crying won't help'_ she thought sadly. Sighing, the tired confused teen lay back onto the bed, smoothing the ends of her dress back over her legs before completely stretching out her body, wincing at the stabbing pain she felt as she did. Her body ached all over and it was becoming more and more difficult to think as the urge to sleep was becoming very tempting. She felt drained, both mentally and physically.

" I guess running from perverted shadows takes a lot out of a girl" the teen smirked as she quietly chuckled at her joke. She was actually surprised at herself for how well she was taking this; then again she had never really been a normal girl.

" **You're really not a normal girl are you Anzu?"**

Another chill shook the brunet's body, Duke's words and the soft tone of his voice echoing in her mind. Then Anzu felt another thing she was experiencing a lot of today. Anger. Shutting her eyes Anzu tried to calm herself, feeling like she was about to strike at something in rage. But the strong emotion persisted, filling her mind. She clenched her hands into fists and in a weak attempt to calm herself, began mercilessly beating her pillow.

Letting out satisfied huffs of breath, the young girl finished her assault on the cotton filled victim, successfully subsiding her irritation she collapsed back down onto the wave of exhaustion hit her and she considered just falling asleep and forgetting everything that happened. _'Or maybe I fell asleep on the bus and all this is just some creepy dream I'm having because I haven't woken up _yet...'

Letting out a long sigh, she knew she was only trying to fool herself and failing her eyes she slowly scanned her hated to admit it but the room was kind of nice.

The walls were covered with intricately designed dark green wall paper; each curve and line connected into a number of different leaf patterns, giving the sense of a forest scene. The dark polished wood floor helped this image, as did the matching bed covers and wooden foot locker beside the door.

Yes this room was beautiful.

Anzu shut her eyes once more and turned on to her side. She had only two choices; stay in this beautiful room, sleeping with one eye open out of fear and pray that nothing happens or...

" Interrogate Duke and find out what the hell's going on" sitting up the brunet pushed a few strands of hair behind her ear, debating her options in her mind. She was still scared but sitting in this beautiful room hiding in fear was hardly going to solve anythingShe sat there for what felt like an eternity, unable to decide on what to do. Her body seemed to decide for her as her stomach emitted a low growl, demanding sustenance.

Placing a hand on her stomach, she realised just how hungry she was. She hadn't eaten since before they left the camp and it had already gotten quite late. Picking up her bag she rummaged through its contents, hoping that she had some kind of food put away in one of its pockets. To her dismay there was nothing she could eat in the bag.

For a moment she wondered if cloth was edible but stopped when her stomach let out a much louder, almost angry sounding growl.

Reluctantly Anzu stood; her body shaking slightly as she steadied herself and opened the door. Sticking her head out, she glanced around for anyone or rather anything hiding in the hallway.

Seeing nothing suspicious, Anzu stepped out of the bedroom, gently closing the door behind her. The door shut with a gentle click. Still nothing strange happened.A little bit relived, a slightly more confident Anzu made her way to the stair case. Stopping she carefully peeked at the roof in the main room_. 'They're gone again'_

The shadow figures were nowhere to be seen. Grateful for this little miracle, Anzu quickly descended the stairs into the main room, stumbling slightly. The dancer briefly worried that her legs would give out on her. The last thing she needed was to collapse from exhaustion and give the shadows an opening to get her again. Shuddering she wrapped her arms around herself protectively. No, she definitely didn't want that.

The room was eerily quiet; the only sound to be heard was her own breathing and the small gurgling of her empty stomach.

'_Where is everyone?'_ Anzu's thoughts were answered by the faint sound of laughing coming from the hall on the right side of the room. The laughing was female and there was a lot of it.

Remembering Duke telling them that the hall led to the kitchen, Anzu wondered if the others were just as famished as she was. Once more her stomach decided her actions as she made her way towards the laughter.

The hallway was long and decorated similar to the main room. Bookcases that stretched to the roof lined the wall on either side; each self packed tightly with various coloured and sized books. Each book case was equally spaced out from each other. More long couches sat between each bookcase, sometimes with a small table in front of them or a strange painting hanging above them.

Anzu stopped to briefly admire one of the paintings.

The painting depicted a purple cloaked figure holding a long staff in front of him. The end of the staff was covered by a small sphere of darkness; it was a mixture of black, different purples and small sparks of white surrounding the orb. The back round of the painting was painted in similar colours, making the figure hard to see. Anzu read the name plate below the painting.

'_The Dark Magician.'_

Continuing down the hall way, she noticed all the paintings depicted some kind of monster or mystical creature, all with the same dark purplish back round. _'The Celtic Guardian, The Flame Swordsman, Harpy Lady, Insect Queen, Kuriboh? What the heck is a Kuriboh?'_

She stared intently at the painting.

The creature was a small brown hairball with two big eyes and two tiny light green clawed hands and feet. A small smile tugged on Anzu's lips _'It's kind of cute'_. Getting closer to the picture she stared at the Kuriboh curiously. Staring into its big eyes Anzu felt something tingle in the back of her mind. Ignoring it she carefully stared at it until the picture blinked.

Anzu's heart stopped. She blinked her wide eyes at the painting and the Kuriboh blinked back.

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAA?" Anzu screamed out in shock

Stumbling backwards Anzu's legs finally gave out making her trip and fall on to her butt, eyes wide and heart racing. The Kuriboh's eyes followed her, watching her curiously as she sat wide eyed with her mouth open on the floor beneath it. The Kuriboh blinked again before closing its eyes in a happy sort of way and letting out a happy squeal that sounded like a high pitched kyu.

Anzu stared at the creature dumbstruck. _'Did it just, smile at me? That's cute. Wait. No! Paintings don't smile or look cute! Okay maybe they can. But only if they're painted like that!'_

"Mazaki?" Hearing her name Anzu snapped her gaze away from the painting towards the voice of her dance instructor.

" Was that you screaming just now?"

Anzu flushed heavily as she realised just how loud she had screamed. Her instructor approached her with a concerned look on his face.

" Are you alright? Did something happen?" She blinked at him, unsure of her answer

" T, The painting..." turning her eyes back to the Kuriboh, she was shocked to see the little fur ball looking exactly the same as it did when she first looked at it. Her instructor followed her gaze to the painting and after a moment turned back to look at her, an amused smile on his face.

" I would have never thought that you were afraid of monsters Mazaki. Especially not some little thing like this" he laughed as he indicated the painting with his thumb.

Anzu's blush grew even deeper; of course she wasn't afraid of a painting! The fact that it smiled at her did creep the hell out of her but there were much worse things in this house to fear. Much, much worse things. Her instructor offered her a hand up which she gratefully took.

Pushing her embarrassment down, she carefully stood up, wobbling slightly. Her body was still exhausted and her little bit of excitement seemed to have increase her hunger. Remembering why she had dared to leave the safety of her beautiful room, she turned to face her instructor.

" I um, heard voices coming from the kitchen earlier. Is there anything to eat?" A bit of embarrassment resurfaced as she asked her question, leaving her cheeks a light shade of pink. Her instructor noticed this and gave her a small but warm smile.

" Don't worry; the other girls were thinking the same thing so Duke said it was alright to use anything in the kitchen. There's some fruit and few things for sandwiches"

Anzu's stomach released a low grumble; just hearing that there was food had her almost drooling. Nodding she followed her instructor down the corridor, keeping her eyes downcast`. She didn't want to look at another picture and have it look back again 'I need sleep. Badly' she thought wearily as they entered the kitchen.

Once more Anzu was awestruck by the sheer size of the room. The floor and walls were covered with black tiles, the counter tops were shining black marble and the cupboards were pure white. A large counter top stood in the centre covered with fruit bowls, drinks and various snacks. The sound of laughter could be heard from one end of the room where two large wooden doors separated what Anzu assumed was a dining room. However at the moment she was much more interested in the food sitting on the counter than the squeals of joy coming from behind the doors.

"We're all in here if you need anything okay?" Anzu gave a smile and a nod to her instructor. Content with her reply he left through the double doors, leaving her alone in the kitchen.

Feeling like she was about to collapse from hunger, the young dancer quickly made her way to the counter and scanned the various food laid out. There was plenty to choose from but just to stay on the safe side she picked up an apple from one of the bowls. The apple was a deep crimson red and made a strong crunching sound as she bit into it. It was sweet and her stomach all but purred as she swallowed her first bite. Taking a second bite Anzu gently closed her eyes as she savoured the flavour of the fruit, it's sweet juices swirling around her tongue as she chewed. As she brought the fruit to her mouth for another bite she was startled to hear a crunching sound before she bit down.

Snapping her eyes open she stared at the apple and saw only two pieces were bitten off. Puzzled she glanced around the kitchen. She was still the only one there. Casting a cautious eye toward the ceiling she was relieved to see there were no shadows either. Another crunch sound brought her attention back to the apple in her hand. Still there were only two bite marks. The sounds were close so it wasn't coming from the other room but nothing in the kitchen looked out of place. Still puzzled she carefully studied her apple, turning it in her hand.

Anzu's eyes widened in shock and fear. Releasing her grip on the fruit it fell from her hand and slowly rolled on the tiled floor.

'_No... No way'_ trying to convince herself what she saw was a mistake; she slowly looked down at the apple. On one side of the apple were two small bite marks, on the opposite side were two larger bite marks. _'But I was holding it...there's just no way.' _Shaking she slowly kneeled down and picked it up, examining the larger bite marks. Swallowing a lump in her throat she saw that they were most definitely real.

Slowly, very slowly terrified sapphire eyes scanned the room for any other presence, but found none. Standing, she placed the apple onto the counter and took a step back, her eyes never leaving the fruit. Slowly she backed away from the counter towards the door leading to the hall, wanting nothing more than to run back to that beautiful room and hide under her bed covers like a child afraid of the dark.

Unfortunately her stomach wouldn't allow it, emitting a low angry growl of disapproval at the thought of leaving without eating a proper meal. _'Oh come on!'_ Anzu exclaimed in her mind, angry at how foolish her body was being but her stomach refused to listen. Reluctantly Anzu tore her eyes from the apple and headed for the nearest fruit bowl.

Quickly grabbing two new apples from the bowl she froze when she heard not only another crunch but long, slow chewing sounds.

Anzu trembled as the sound continued followed by swallowing and another crunch. Forcing herself to turn her head towards the sound, she nearly fainted as she saw a figure sitting on the counter eating the nearly finished apple.

Her heart began beating rapidly as she looked at the figure. He was handsome, terrifyingly so; with pale skin, sharp features and dark crimson eyes shadowed by long angular white bangs. His hair spiked out strangely and was pure white, which contrasted greatly with the black cloak he was wearing. As he took another bite of the apple she noted his long white canines as they dug into the apple.

Heat slowly raised in Anzu's cheeks as she stared at him. Yes he was terrifying but he was also ridiculously attractive. His dark mysterious eyes; which had been concentrating on the apple in his hand suddenly locked with hers, sending shivers down her spine. He stared at her for a moment, as though he was searching her eyes for something before giving her a small seductive smirk that caused her blush to deepen.

"Hello" his voice was low, dark, seductive and above all else, dangerous

"I'm Bakura"

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><p><em>Yay! Another chapter completed! Again I'm sorry for the late update but I had a lot of tests on and so I was busy with study and stuff. Also, Hurray! Bakura makes his appearance! I decided to change the format after getting some very kind advice from OfBrokenLove so let me know if you like it ^^.<em>

_Please R&R_


	5. Nightmares and Dreams

_A big thank you to Blue Lace Agate who reminded me that I haven't updated this story in ages ^^;_

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><p>Title: Love in the shadows<p>

Chapter 5: Nightmares and Dreams

Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh!

Pairing: Anzu x Ryou (slight pairing with other characters)

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! Or any of its characters

Warning! This is rated M for a reason, do not read if you do not like swearing or sexual content. Though there may be none in this chapter, there may be in later chapters.

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><p>Anzu stared wide eyed at the handsome boy, unable to tear her sapphire eyes away from his own crimson ones as the two apples she held slipped from her grip and landed on the floor.<p>

"B, Bakura?" her voice was shaky as she repeated the name the boy had given her as his own

" Yes?" he replied, his smirk changing to an amused grin. Anzu blinked, her mind blank. She had said his name out of pure shock and now staring at him she was unsure of what to say. Bakura continued to look at her as he once more took a bite from the apple. The action clicked something in Anzu's mind.

"That's my apple" she stated exasperated.

He stopped mid-bite "So?" He asked Anzu blinked once more as he bit into the fruit. For some reason she felt stupid or rather he was making her feel stupid with his simple answers. That and the fact he couldn't possibly be sitting in front of her, but was and seemed not to have a care in the world as he did.

With a finale bite and a swallow Bakura finished the apple, core and all and licked some of the juice off his lips. Anzu shivered. For some reason everything this guy did seemed to have a deeper meaning. Even his tongue darting out to lick his lips didn't seem to be as simple as that. _'It must be his eyes'_ she reasoned to herself. There was definitely something dark about his eyes, something dangerous.

"See something you like my dear?" Bakura drawled seductively noticing she was staring at his eyes. Anzu blushed and spluttered some incoherent response _'Okay rule one avoid all eye contact' _Turning away she wondered if he'd be gone when she turned back.

She heard him chuckle and moved so he was back in her line of sight. With another blush she turned once again so she was facing the double doors at the end of the kitchen. Once more he moved before she could blink and was now standing with his face inches from hers. Startled she took a step back right onto one of the forgotten apples and lost her balance. Before she fell however, he was behind her balancing her with his hands on her shoulders.

She shivered. His hands were like ice. Like the fingers that held her in the bathroom.

Anzu snapped back up in horror _'He's one of them'_ she turned and faced him, he smirked at her frightened expression "Something wrong?" he asked nonchalantly. Swallowing Anzu narrowed her eyes in an attempt to make herself look more confident. "W, What are you?" She silently cursed how shaky her voice came out and how amused he looked at the question

"Me?" he asked mockingly pointing to himself. Anzu glared at him and he laughed in response. Before she could react or even figure out what happened, Anzu found her self bent backwards over the marble counter top with Bakura pinning her hands above her head, a look of dark amusement across his features. Her face flushed red at the compromising position she was in but paled white when Bakura leaned down and nuzzled her neck, filling her vision with his thick white hair. Her heart began beating rapidly once more while the chills from having his freezing hands hold her wrists sent shivers down her spine. _'Not again!'_ she thought desperately as her captor moved up to her ear, chuckling as he spoke.

"Me?" he repeated, not bothering to hide his amusement and frightening her that much more. He gently bit down on the outside of her ear, drawing a sharp cry out of her before continuing in a silky purr

"I'm your worst nightmare"

Anzu's mind froze at his words, her body turning stiff. Bakura smirked against her ear as he felt her whole body tense up before she began to tremble uncontrollably beneath him.

"Pfffft"

Bakura blinked and frowned

….Laughing?

Was she laughing at him?

Leaning up he found her looking down and snorting in an attempt to suppress her laughter. He frowned. What the hell was she laughing at? Wasn't she terrified not thirty seconds ago? She looked up and he stared at her puzzled, but this seemed to make it harder for her as she let a few giggles slip, her mouth turned up in amusement. He narrowed his eyes at her and scowled in an attempt to intimidate her. This had the opposite affect however, acting as the finale trigger for her to let it out.

Anzu burst into a mad fit of laughter, gasping and wheezing for air in between each guffaw.

Bakura jumped off her shocked.

Did she go insane?

Anzu clutched her sides as tears welled up in her eyes. She couldn't help it.

That line! It was just so cliché!

'_**I'm you worst nightmare'**_ it echoed in her mind and brought on another fit of uncontrollable laughs. It was even worse when she remembered how low Bakura's voice had been when he said it. Had he said anything other than that she would probably be crying in fear right now. Instead her eyes were watering from the pain in her sides.

She actually couldn't stop herself.

She was scared, oh yes she was still very scared, in fact she was pretty sure Bakura was about to kill her for laughing at him, but it was just too stupid not to laugh at it. Besides that, recently she wasn't as in control of her emotions as she would normally be. Like earlier when she got embarrassed in front of Duke or when she got so angry she nearly passed out in the bath. It's like her emotions were in over drive and she had no way of stopping them. And right now, well she just couldn't seem to stop laughing.

Bakura stared at her dumbfound, quickly growing irritated "Enough" he growled now glaring at Anzu's shaking form. Anzu took several deep breaths to calm herself, chuckling and eventually managed to look up at Bakura with out laughing.

"Sorry" she mumbled, covering her mouth to stop the few last giggles.

Bakura's glare intensified "What" he hissed "Is so funny?" Anzu straightened at the amount of venom in his voice, her amusement lost and quickly being replaced with dread. She swallowed hard, he was definitely pissed and no doubt if she told him it was what he said that she found funny, he would only get angrier.

She looked at the floor, suddenly ashamed for her rudeness "Sorry" she repeated meekly. Bakura snorted but didn't stop glaring at her.

Anzu frowned. She felt terrible…..

Wait.

Why did she feel terrible?

Wasn't he the one who pinned her down and tried to scare her? Her frowned deepened as she looked up at him. He was still glaring at her looking considerably angry.

"What?" he snapped.

Anzu felt something bubble in her stomach as she unconsciously clenched her fists.

'_There's that anger again'_ a small voice in the back of her mind alerted her of the rage that was beginning to redden her cheeks.

'_Why the hell did I apologize to him? He's the one who stopped me from leaving by acting like a child and taking my apple'_.

Her apple. The whole reason she came down was for food and he took the apple she was eating right out of her hand. The nerve! There were plenty of other apples but he still took hers. With a new found fury she glared at him, catching him by surprise.

Bakura blinked in shock. What the hell was wrong with this girl? One minute she's scared, than she's laughing and now she was angry. Even if women did tend to have ridiculous mood swings this was a bit extreme. He met her glare with a questioning look, edging her to voice her problem. Anzu complied.

"Apple!" she growled at him. He looked at her dumbfound

"What?"

"You took my apple!"

Bakura frowned. Didn't they go through this already?

"So?"

Anzu felt herself getting angrier. _'He's doing it again!'_ He was trying to make her feel stupid again with his simple nonchalant answers. _'Well not this time buster' _

"Why?" she asked

He blinked "Why what?"

Something twitched in Anzu's head, her rage growing at how he was playing dumb.

"Why-"She spoke as slowly and calmly as she could "did you take- _my apple_?" she put an extra emphasis on the fact it was her apple.

Bakura's shoulders slumped "Oh that" he answered in a bored tone "Well you looked like you were enjoying it so I took a bite." He smirked at her,"It tasted good so I took another. You know you're very funny to watch when your scared" Anzu narrowed her eyes at him when he added that last part

"How did you bite into it when I was holding it?" He chuckled. Suddenly he was once more standing with his face inches from hers, shocking the enraged girl out of her anger "The same way I just did that my dear" he drawled silkily taking an extra step forward just to emphasize his point.

Another twitch in the back of her head brought Anzu's rage back full on if not stronger.

"Get away from me!" she practically screamed as she slammed her palms into his chest to push him back. Bakura snickered, knowing that there was no way she could possibly push him back. Which is why he was shocked at the immense pain he felt as he was shot into the wall behind him.

'_What?"_ He thought bewildered. He was pinned to the wall by some sort of-shadow? No. A cloud of shadows holding him restrained. Anzu gasped as her knees buckled and she collapsed onto her legs. What just happened? Her forgotten exhaustion had returned ten fold and she felt completely drained. Her hands tingled with some unknown force and lifting them to check why, she couldn't believe her eyes.

Long thin lines of shadow, weaved between her fingers, pulsing with some unknown life with tiny sparks of white electricity running through it. On closer inspection the shadows were actually a dark purple color mixed with lines of black and blending together to make it even darker.

Anzu's eyes widened as the shadow flowed around her hand before completely vanishing. A heavy silence hung in the air as she stared blankly at her hands, lost in a confused haze of questions. Why did it disappear and more importantly where did it come from?

"Anzu?"

Snapping her head to the voice, she found Duke standing in front of the double doors, eyeing her fallen form.

"Are you alright?" he asked with genuine concern in his voice as he slowly approached her. Anzu blinked. Was she okay? She had no idea what just happened. One minute Bakura's standing in front of her, the next he's pinned to the wall. The thought hit her. Bakura!

She looked up at where he had been pinned by the dark clouds but found he was nowhere to be seen. Did he escape when she was checking her hands or when the shadows vanished? She couldn't be sure. "Anzu?" Duke now stood beside her, clearly puzzled. She looked at him, letting the name slip before she could stop herself "Bakura"

Duke's face immediately paled as he stared at her wide eyed. "What?" he asked in disbelieve. Anzu didn't answer him, or rather she couldn't. It was too much. Her mind was too tired to do anything but shut down, letting her fall forward as her world faded to black, a glimpse of Duke catching her before she slipped into a deep much needed sleep.

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><p><em><strong>Darkness. Darkness everywhere. In every direction, above and below, for miles and miles-never ending.<strong>_

_**A small child stands alone in the darkness, her bright blue eyes shining with some unknown light that couldn't possibly exist in this darkness, her auburn hair flowing with some unknown force. She wears a cream dress, stopping at her ankles, covering her arms and neck. She starts to walk in the darkness, heading to some unknown destination, her steps small but with a slight bounce. The child is not afraid of the never ending darkness. She begins to skip, giggling and humming some unknown long forgotten tune. **_

_**Two tall figures stand in her unmarked path. She sees them and squeals in joy, running to them and throwing her small arms around one of them. The figure she holds bends down and picks her up, cradling her in their arms. She looks at the figure but cannot see their face, only the long cream dress they wear identical to her own. She looks to the other figure still seeing only the cream dress. But she can feel their hands as they gently hold her. She knows they are smiling at her, looking at her with love in their eyes. She giggles once more as the figure runs its non existent hand through her hair, playfully ruffling it before setting her back down on the darkness. She smiles as the figures each reach out an invisible hand to her. She takes them both, her small hands curling around the solid air. She walks with the figures, swinging happily with every step, laughing and hearing their silent laughter. They speak loving words that she can't hear but knows they're saying it. The tune she hummed now plays in the air surrounding with its soft melody. **_

_**Ahead of them the girl sees more figures, all like the ones holding her hands. She runs to them and she feels their smiles. She doesn't know them, she couldn't and yet she doesn't feel out of place. She hears their kind voices, welcoming her, praising her. The figures move slowly like liquid to form a circle around her, holding invisible hands with one another. She stands in the middle and begins to dance. She doesn't know the dance but her body moves on its own. The figures mimic her movement as they slowly rotate in their circle. The girl laughs and sings along to the tune hanging in the air. She doesn't know the words but they fall from her mouth in perfect harmony to the music. She dances and sings her unknown song and dance, the figures joining in with their own melody of silence. **_

_**Suddenly there is a bright light. It shines a blinding white before turning a crimson red. It shines above the girl. She stops dancing and stares at the light. She is afraid. She hears screams, no longer silent but ringing throughout the darkness. The figure's dresses no longer look cream but are stained red by the light. Their screams grow louder, filled with agony and pain. She begins to cry, the unknown music lost beneath the screams of the figures. The light grows larger as the figures begin to fall. The crimson red leaks from their fallen form, pooling before her. She screams in terror and covers her eyes. **_

_**She feels herself being lifted. One of the figures is holding her close, running from the light, another following close behind. She opens her tear filled eyes; the figure who holds her was the first one she met, the one behind the second. The light begins to consume the darkness, mixing with it, changing it. The figure places her down and turns to the other figure. She sees them look at her sadly before turning towards the approaching light. She screams for them to come back, she begs and cries but they do not turn back. She is pulled away from them, farther and farther away until once more she is surrounded by only darkness. **_

_**Darkness. Darkness everywhere. In every direction, above and below, for miles and miles-never ending.**_

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><p>Anzu shot up out of her bed gasping. She frantically looked around, seeing only darkness. Stumbling from under her covers she moved her hand blindly along the wall until she found the light switch. The light blinds her for a moment before her eyes adjust. Looking around, she recognizes the room as the bedroom she was in earlier, the familiar green wallpaper still beautifully detailed.<p>

Relief flooded her body as she sighed "It was a dream…" her voice was barely above a whisper as she slid down the wall to sit on the floor "just a dream". Taking a deep breath Anzu gently closed her eyes. Her dream was still fresh in her mind. The details or rather lack of details confused her. The little girl had definitely been her but everything else was too random to place. As far as she could remember the only dresses she ever wore were pink, white or blue; never cream or in that style. As for the red light…nothing came to mind for that. The featureless figures could mean anything.

Groaning Anzu opened her eyes. How did she even get up here? Recalling her little incident in the kitchen it dawned on her. Bakura.

Bakura was one of those shadow things. Those shadow things that had been harassing her. Standing she remembered her earlier mission to get answers out of Duke.

She peeked out the door into the hallway and found it deserted. Carefully slipping out she wondered just how late it was. Sneaking around a mysterious perverted shadow invested house in the middle of the night was probably not the smartest thing to be doing. Then she heard something. Soft almost whispered voices coming from the main room.

Silently Anzu crept towards the stair way, unsure if she was about to get her answers or make the worst mistake of her life

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><p><em>Ta-da! How did you like the dream sequence? And stick around because next chapter I plan to reveal the shadow people's identities (Gasp!)<em>

_R&R to let me know if you want more!_


	6. Hell is hot

_Hey look! An update^^….okay I know I was really late in updating but I'm really busy lately with studying for exams and working on my other stories. Thanks for being so patient with me and thank you for the reviews (You have no idea how happy they make me XD ) On with the story!_

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><p>Title: Love in the shadows<p>

Chapter 6: Hell is hot

Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh!

Pairing: Anzu x Ryou (slight pairing with other characters)

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! Or any of its characters

Warning! This is rated M for a reason, do not read if you do not like swearing or sexual content. Though there may be none in this chapter, there may be in later chapters.

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><p>Anzu heard her heart beating in her ears. Her breathing was quiet but sounded so much louder to her and her mouth became dryer and dryer with each step she took. The hallway was completely dark, robbing her of her sense of sight. Relying on her sense of touch as she slid along the wall and the sound of quiet whispers she carefully made her way towards the main room. The quiet voices became clearer the closer she got to the staircase. Stopping at the corner wall just before the top step she heard a deep and unknown voice speak<p>

"- surprised there were so many girls on the bus" She blinked. Another guy? It wasn't Duke and while there was something seductive in it, it wasn't as dark as Bakuras. It was deep and strong, like the voice of a noble leader

"Yeah, lucky us. Most of them are pretty easy on the eyes as well" another different voice, this one smooth as silk, enchanting and dangerous. Like a tempting serpent. Anzu carefully slid along the wall before the step, getting as close as she could without being seen from the bottom of the steps

"Looks don't really matter much though do they?" a somewhat child like voice asked. It was higher and lacked any tones of seduction. It was innocent sounding, like a care free child.

"No" the deep voice replied "but it dose make it more pleasant." Quiet laughter filled the room that made Anzu's skin crawl until a voice she recognized as Dukes spoke.

"We'll have to be more careful this time though, their teacher isn't a total idiot and if something goes wrong we'll be in deep trouble"

"What could go wrong?" the silky voice asked "None of them looks strong enough to put up a fight-"

"The brown haired girl who noticed us could be a problem" an icy voice spoke. This voice chilled her to the bone. There was a sort of arrogance to the voice, like royalty addressing its servants. Anzu shivered not only from the coolness of the voice but also from fear. She hoped that one of the other brunet girls noticed them. She had already had her fair share of unwanted attention to last a life time.

"Anzu?" Duke answered. Said girl cursed her luck. They were talking about her. "She's definitely not normal"

A dark voice scoffed "You can say that again. Little bitch almost broke my arm earlier". This voice made Anzu's insides freeze. It was similar to Bakura's in its tone but also like the silky voice. More like a deadly serpent than a tempting one but still with a hint of something alluring.

"Well you two shouldn't have been messing with her in the bath anyway" A voice that was un-mistakably Bakuras said, as dark and mocking as it had been in their earlier encounter.

"Well maybe she shouldn't have looked so fun to tease" the dark voice chuckled in reply.

"Or sounded so cute when she whimpered" the silky voice said with a hint of cruel amusement that made Anzu cringe. "Besides; you're the one who got _friendly _with her in the kitchen"

"About that" Duke mumbled "What the hell exactly happened?"

"Don't know" Bakura answered flatly "One second I'm in front of her, next I'm slammed up against the wall covered in some kind of mist."

"Mist?" the icy voice asked

"Yeah, sort of a blackish purple cloud with sparks of electricity"

"Did it hurt?" the childish voice again. Bakura snorted

"Yeah, like hundreds of tiny needles pricking me with sharpened icicles"

"Sounds like what we felt before she blasted us into the tiles" the dark voice murmured

"Indeed" the silky voice agreed.

From her hiding place Anzu was trembling. _'It was real. The purple stuff swirling around my hands, I didn't imagine it' _She covered her mouth to quiet the gasps of disbelieve threatening to escape. _'What's going on?'_ He said it was like needles, but when it was wrapped around her fingers she felt no pain. In fact, she didn't remember feeling anything when she looked t it. Not only in her hands but everywhere. Like her whole body suddenly went numb or lost the ability to feel.

Her knees began to grow weak, threatening to buckle beneath her as hot bile burned the bottom of her throat. Everything was so confusing. She felt like vomiting but held it back- getting sick would not help the situation.

"How bizarre" the deep voice mumbled "Maybe she's one of us? It would explain how she broke Duke's charm"

"I don't think so "Duke said "She only broke free when she saw you idiots moving around"

"Watch your mouth Devlin" the icy voice hissed "She wouldn't have noticed us if you hadn't taken so long seducing her". There was a long pause. Anzu assumed Duke was glaring at the owner of the icy voice. Seducing her? Oh god, that's why he was acting so friendly before. And she fell for it, hook line and sinker.

Could she have been any stupider? She knew he was a playboy from the moment he opened his stupid handsome mouth….she did not just call him handsome. She didn't. Okay she did. '_But Bakura's hotter….Did I just? Oh God! What the hells wrong with me?'_ The brunet clutched her head in a mixture of confusion and self disgust while the deep voice broke the silence below.

"So basically the strange girl is off limits. What about the others?" Duke let out a weary sigh

"Yes, yes, they're all normal. Just don't go nuts and we should be safe"

"It's a bad idea" a new voice spoke. This one was quiet and almost timid with his words. Like a child unsure of the answer he was giving an adult. Anzu was also surprised at how gentle the voice was. The other voices, with the exception of the child like voice, all held a dark note to them. Like every word was laced with a malicious undertone. This voice had none. It was pure.

"Care to elaborate?" the silky voice questioned

"She saw Bakura. She knows Duke lied about being the only one living here. When she wakes up she'll probably tell her instructor. He'll get suspicious and when the other girls come to him his suspicions will be re-enforced. Even if none of them remember he's bound to notice how weak they look" There was another long pause, as if the other voices were letting the words sink in.

It made sense. Anzu definitely planned on telling her instructor about Bakura and the strange things happening in this messed up mansion. The only reason she hadn't said anything when she met him outside the kitchen was:

(A) Her mind was pre-occupied with her stomach's persistent growling,

(B) She was so hungry she had just hallucinated a painting coming to life and smile at her (at least she hoped it was a hallucination)

(C) How do explain to a man that you were fondled in the bath without stuttering and stumbling over your words in embarrassment?

Safe to say Anzu did not regret forgetting mentioning it to her teacher. However after meeting Bakura in the kitchen, there was no doubt that Duke deceived them. She considered going to his room right now and waking him before the voices in the main room could fulfill their plans with the other girls. A low growl stopped her though as the deep voice spoke

"This is your fault" the deep voice accused

"What?" an angry Bakura snapped in reply

"If you hadn't introduced yourself to her than there'd be no problem"

Bakura scoffed "Oh please. And I suppose she would think she imagined getting felt up in the bath by those two"

"Jealous are we?" the dark voice chuckled. Anzu gagged. A nauseating feeling rose in her gut and the need to vomit returned full blast. She was humiliated and disgusted as she recalled the intimate and disturbing touches from earlier. A small bubble of rage quickly followed but she pushed it back down. It seemed that every time she got angry something went wrong.

"Devlin?" the icy voice asked

"Yeah?"

"You made sure to tell them all to stay in their rooms after midnight right?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"There's a foot sticking out at the top of the stairs"

Anzu froze. The voices fell silent. Time stood still as she slowly rolled her eyes downward to look at her feet. The tip of her toes on her left foot peeked out from behind the corner. How did he see it? It was completely pitch black and even if he was standing at the bottom of the stairs, it would be near impossible to spot something so small. A deep sense of dread quickly consumed her heart.

The next second Anzu realized she had bolted down the hallway away from the stair case, her bare feet running faster than her mind could keep up with. She hadn't even thought of where she was running to, just that she had to get away.

She thought of going back to her room, maybe hiding under the covers and pretending she was still asleep but it would also mean she would be cornered with no way of escaping.

Not that running blindly through unknown corridors was a much better option but right now she was running on pure instinct. The instinct to get away.

Suddenly Anzu felt something cold grab her shoulders _'No!'_ she screamed in her mind as the icy touch pulled her back making her stumble over her own feet. It was impossible. There was no way anyone could possibly run that fast. Anyone who was human anyway.

Her breath hitched at the thought.

She tried to scream, to alert the others of the danger she was in but it was immediately cut off by a frozen hand covering her mouth. She still screamed but it was completely muffled. She struggled but the grip on her shoulder only intensified, pulling her against a solid and freezing form.

She struggled harder as the figure wrapped their arm around her waist, pinning her against their chest with their other hand still clamped firmly over her mouth. She considered biting the unknown hand but decide against it. She was basically at their mercy and making them angry would definitely not help her any.

She still struggled against the body, digging her heels into the floor as she was slowly dragged backwards. However nothing seemed to work. Anzu's heart pumped loudly in her ears her breath quickening. She was panicking. Tears fell freely from her eyes as she chocked back a sob. What was wrong with her? She was stronger than this. But the overall feeling of helplessness overtook her completely. She began to tremble uncontrollably.

Her captor seemed to notice this as they stopped moving and leaned down until hot breath wafted past her ear. Amazing how something so cold could create something so hot.

"Please calm down. We're not going to hurt you. I promise" the voice was the quiet timid one that had spoken against the others plan. He spoke slowly but clearly. It was soothing and despite the fear of her position Anzu felt herself calming ever so slightly.

"If I take my hand away, do you promise not to scream?" Anzu nodded and he slowly slid his hand from her face wrapping it around her waist with the other so he was holding her in a somewhat awkward embrace. Anzu took in a shaky breath, exhaling hard in n attempt to calm down. It worked a little so she did it again. The quiet voice didn't say anything as she did this, instead waiting patiently for her to relax in his hold.

After several deep breaths, she had stopped crying and began to sniff her now runny nose. As she did she caught the scent of cotton off her captor's clothes. It wasn't overly powerful but mild, like fading soap or washing detergent. She snorted when she inhaled too fast and felt extremely embarrassed when the figure chuckled. It wasn't mocking like the laughter the other shadow figures used on her but rather just being amused at the noise. She herself let out an embarrassed laugh, smiling slightly. She was definitely insane. How else could she possibly be laughing in this situation?

"Feeling better?" he asked her softly.

"Yeah" she replied quietly. It was strange. A moment ago she was almost having a panic attack from him restraining her, now she was talking to him like they were friends.

'_It's his voice'_ she realized. There really wasn't anything dangerous about it. No darkness or malicious intent.

"Did you catch her?" Duke asked from somewhere behind them.

"Yeah" he answered loosening his grip on her slightly. Not enough for her to get away but likely so that she could walk comfortably instead of him dragging her.

"Right" Duke mumbled "Bring her to the main sitting room" She felt him nod and turn her around slowly so that she was facing the stairs way once more. He nudged her gently indicating for her to walk forward. It was still pitch black but the figure seemed to have no trouble navigating through the halls.

After a while they stopped and she was twirled around so she was now facing the quiet voice. His hands moved up to her shoulders. The action confused her until he gently pushed her down onto a seat. She shifted slightly as he pulled away, trying to get more comfortable in what felt like an armchair.

For a moment light blinded her, seeing only white, her eyes stinging with tears. Slowly her eyes adjusted to see blurry colors and shapes. She gently rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand, wiping away the excess liquid.

"Anzu?"

She opened her eyes and looked up, meeting two familiar emerald orbs. Duke stared down at her with a contemplating look. He sighed

"How much did you hear?" She blinked at him, unsure of how to answer him. Should she play dumb and pretend she heard nothing? No. No that would be pretty pointless in her current situation.

"A little bit before you started talking about me" she answered honestly. Duke let out another sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose

"Wonderful" he murmured sarcastically.

He stared at her for another moment and gave a deep sigh.

"Enough with the sighing already" Bakura growled

"We already knew she knew about us so knock off the dramatics"

Duke turned around, his back now facing Anzu.

"Shut up" he snapped back "I'm trying to figure out how to explain this to her"

"I doubt she's stupid enough to fall for any ridiculous excuse you make up" the silky voice drawled "Why don't you step aside and let her decide for herself what she sees?"

Duke waited a moment until he did just that. Anzu followed Dukes back for a moment before turning back to look straight ahead.

Her eyes widened.

Her jaw dropped slightly.

Her face flushed a light pink.

Her stomach did flips and her heart fluttered as she stared in disbelief.

"I think we broke her" Bakura snickered at her expression.

Seven boys stood at the other side of the room.

Seven boys that looked about her age or slightly older.

Seven ridiculously attractive boys, with stunning features, all dressed in identical black cloaks were staring at her.

Staring right at her.

Anzu rolled her eyes down at her appearance. Her pale blue nightdress was old and well worn. Her feet were bare and she had the distinct feeling her hair was a mess.

For the first time in a long time Anzu felt very self conscious about her appearance. Okay probably not the best time to worry about your looks but these guys were insanely good looking.

The farthest on the right had sharp features, short dark brown hair and cool blue eyes. He was taller than the rest and held himself with an air of royalty.

Beside him stood an exotic almost feminine looking tanned boy. His hair was long and the color of gold sand. His eyes were soft lavender and beneath each eye was a small black marking.

To his left stood an almost identical tanned boy. This one however had sharper features and his hair spiked upwards oddly. His eyes were slightly darker and he was a little bit taller.

Next to him was a much shorter boy with wide violet eyes. His hair was tri colored of black, red and yellow spiked up like a star. He was more cute than handsome.

Again the boy beside him was almost identical except for being slightly taller and darker looking. His eyes also had a hint of crimson rimming the violet.

Bakura stood with a smirk plastered across his darkly handsome face, his dark crimson eyes gleaming with amusement. Obviously he was enjoying her reaction.

Finally the last figure stood almost shyly beside Bakura. Once more he was near identical to Bakura except his features were softer and his eyes were a milk chocolate brown. His snow white hair also spiked less than Bakuras

At that moment Anzu was sure she was in hell.

And God was it hot.

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><p><em>Okay so I didn't name them but you can tell who they are right? <em>

_What are they? What's happening to Anzu? Will there be more kinkiness?_

_Next chapter Duke will reveal all!_

_Review and let me know if you want more!_


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